1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vanity case of the type in which a receptacle member and a cover member are hinged together at the respective rear ends and the cover member is maintained in a closed position with respect to the receptacle member by engagement of latch means formed on the front ends of both members. 2. Description of the Prior Art
Various attempts and efforts have hitherto been made in order to facilitate an opening operation of the cover member, and a push piece has been proposed and found effective. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,276,893 and 4,399,826 disclose such a push piece arranged in a recess formed on the marginal portion of the receptacle member in a slidable manner (U.S. Pat. No. 4,276,893) or in a rotatable manner (U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,826) so that an inwardly directed pressure applied to the push piece urges the cover member upwardly to thereby release the engagement of latch means. In order to open the cover member, the push piece is pressed by, for example, the thumb of one hand, which releases the engagement of the latch means. Then the front end of cover member is lifted up by using the other hand or by shifting the thumb to the front edge of the cover. It is thus necessary to use both hands or to do a two-step operation in opening the cover.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,331,168 discloses an arrangement of the push piece in the cover member, whereby the cover member can be opened by the same finger which has pressed the push piece. In this vanity case, however, a portion of the push piece to be pressed is located just above the upper edge of the receptacle member so that the lower end of the finger which has pressed the push piece tends to come into contact with the upper edge of receptacle, resulting in a difficulty in lifting up the cover by the same finger without shifting this. In order to avoid the contact a delicate operation is required in positioning the finger onto the push piece.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a vanity case having a push piece which can be pressed by a user's finger without delicate positioning of the finger.
Another object of the invention is to provide a vanity case in which a cover member can be opened to a desired angle by the same finger as pressing a push piece without shifting that finger.